Eternal Streams

“Jesus answered, ‘Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.’” (John 4:13-14, NIV)

“On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, ‘Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.’” (John 7:37-38, NIV)

“Hydrate or die” is what my fellow scuba divers and I said to each other each time we clambered aboard the boat after a dive. While extreme, this statement summarizes a reality of participating in the underwater sport. Diving is a sweaty workout, burning anywhere from three hundred to seven hundred calories per hour. Many times, I have seen an otherwise strong diver crumble to the boat deck from dehydration after the exertion of a dive.

While my fieldwork drink of choice is sun-made peach herbal tea, some divers up the ante by adding electrolytes to their water bottles. There’s nothing quite like that first sip after a dive, rinsing away the briny aftertaste of your salt-coated regulator. Like a withered plant blossoming under a rainfall, you can practically feel the water bringing life back to your body.

Jesus said, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink” (John 7:37). At another time, he declared, “Whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (John 4:14). While the peach tea I drink after a dive keeps me hydrated to swim another day, this spiritual water promises to bring us eternal life. Far beyond a refreshing sip of electrolytes topside on the boat, what Jesus offers brings ultimate satisfaction. As we examine his statements about this miraculous water, we come to realize that he was talking about the Holy Spirit.

Just as a scuba diver lives by the phrase “hydrate or die,” perhaps the Christian must choose to “hydrate with the Spirit or spiritually die.” Having a regular practice of meeting with God sustains our faith. It brings us hope, renewal, and rest when we are depleted.

As we grow in our desire to know God more intimately, we invest in relationship with him, recognizing that our time is best spent by soaking in his life-giving presence before diving back into the immediacies of our lives. Yes, there is much to be done. The professional diver feels urgency to get back into the salty ocean, but they also recognize that they must drink fresh water first. They need to pause, rest a moment on the boat, and enjoy the peach tea that will enable them to do the work ahead. Just so, come drink from the river of the water of life, finding complete satisfaction and ultimate life with God.